Roast Pork with Sage and Potatoes
Instructions:
This is best with firm waxy potatoes like fingerlings or
red potatoes; if they’re small enough, keep them whole
And of course you can skip the potatoes altogether for a
more basic roast pork.
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced fresh sage leaves or
2 teaspoons dried sage
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
About 2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch
cubes
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more as
needed
One 3- to 4-pound pork loin roast, bone in, one 2- to
3-pound boneless roast, or a similar-sized portion of
fresh ham
MAKES: 6 or more servings
TIME: 11/2 to 2 hours, largely unattended
- Heat the oven to 425 F. Mix together the garlic, sage, salt, and pepper. Put the potatoes in a roasting pan that is also large enough to hold the pork and toss them with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and about 1 teaspoon of the garlic-sage mixture. Put the roasting pan in the oven while you prepare the pork.
- Using a thin-bladed knife and your fingers, make slits all over the pork and insert most of the remaining garlic-sage mixture. Spread the rest of it all over the outside of the roast and nestle it among the potatoes. Pour a little more olive oil over the meat and put it in the oven.
- Roast, undisturbed, for 30 minutes. Remove it from the oven, stir the potatoes (you will probably have to scrape some of them off the bottom of the pan), and baste the pork with a little of the pan juices. Lower the heat to 325 F and continue to cook, stirring the potatoes every 15 minutes or so. After 11/4 hours or so total cooking time, begin to check the meat (it’s likely to take longer, but it’s worth checking); when an instant-read thermometer registers 145–150 F, transfer the meat to a warm platter.
- While the meat rests for 10 to 15 minutes, turn the oven heat up to 450 F to make sure the potatoes are done and crisp (use your judgment; you can simply run them under the broiler if they just need a bit of browning or keep the oven at 325 F if they’re done perfectly). Carve the meat and serve with the potatoes